Superintendents across New York state are still digesting data released Friday from the third-grade through eighth-grade math and English Language Arts (ELA) assessment taken last May.

State leaders use that information to measure and compare school districts solely based on student scores.

"If you talk to a person who understands assessment, we would wish they would tell us about what students have learned and how we can change our curriculum to do better in the job of teaching kids math and ELA," said Kevin Whitaker, Jamestown Public Schools superintendent.

Whitaker says he can't really evaluate the state's proficiency averages, as education leaders keep changing the assessment and developing new standards.

"So I can't necessarily compare or make a statement yet because I'm going to have to look at two or three years of results to make a determination as to whether or not that's good or not," said Whitaker.

As for his district, he says test scores improved in 10 out of 12 tests.

"What I can't say is this proves that we are far better than last year, even though our results are far better than last year," said Kevin.

The New York State United Teachers union continues to encourage the state to put less emphasis on singular, standardized tests and tailor instruction to students’ individual needs.

"The test scores and State Education Department tell us what we already know: no single test score can accurately depict the full breadth of learning that students possess," said Anna Gronewold, NYSUT spokesperson.

Whitaker agrees.

"What is important and what teachers want to see is, did my students learn the math that I taught them? And these tests don't necessarily take that into account. That's why classroom assessment and local assessments are so important," he said.

The tests will be taken again in the spring.